Dimension Jump
by Slycer
Summary: An ordinary teenage boy one day suddenly gets pulled into a different world. Gifted with strange abilities to help him survive, how will he stay alive and deal with the demon inhabitants of the realm while trying to find a way back home. Also, could there be a deeper reason to everything?
1. Chapter 1: A long drop from home

**Just to let everyone know, while I like the SMT series, I'm not too knowledgeable about it, having only played Devil Survivor 2, a bit of Devil Survivor 1, and most of Strange Journey. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the story!**

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 **Chapter 1:**

A long drop from home

(Ryu's room):

"Ninety-eight… ninety-nine… one, hundred!" exclaimed a teenage boy as he completed his hundredth push-up before promptly dropping onto his back. Some of his messy black hair was stuck to his forehead from sweat. His emerald green eyes looked up at the ceiling as he lay down and regained his breath. His peach-toned skin was covered in a light layer of perspiration from the physical effort he'd just gone through.

After a few more seconds of rest, Ryu sat up before getting up and onto his feet.

"A shower sounds pretty good right now," he mused, already making his way over to the door with long strides. He was seventeen years old, had an average, if slightly tall height and a lean yet muscular and athletic build. He was living alone in a four room apartment that consisted of: his (bed)room, a guest room, the kitchen/ dining room and finally the living room.

His parents lived in another city to the one where he was taking college, but they sent over more than enough money every month for his various needs. He saved up the excess in a money box in his wardrobe. At the moment, he was in the third day of a two-week break from college. He would have gone home, however his parents said that they had to go away to somewhere for around a month due to some issue with his dad's work.

After finishing his shower, Ryu made himself a light lunch consisting of some grilled lamb meat with seasoning and steamed vegetables. He wasn't feeling particularly hungry, so he didn't really need to make any more than the small portion that he served himself. Having lived on his own for a little over a year by now, he was responsible enough to fully take care of himself and properly attend to his needs and wants. Cooking had probably been the hardest thing he learnt. At first, he was terrible, his results being just about safely edible, but his mother gave him some neatly handwritten instructions for a few recipes as well as a few homemade videos. He also bought a cookbook or two so that he could learn how to make more varied foods in addition to things besides main meals. Now he was good enough that he sometimes worked part-time as a chef on the campus cafeteria.

'Wonder what I should do,' he thought when he finished washing up. 'I've more or less got the full day left and the weather's good too. Maybe I should hop over to the park, that guy who sells those cool keychains might be there today. Even if he isn't, there are others who give other stuff and it's a pretty nice place with all the different trees and plants.'

A few minutes later, he locked to door to his apartment and began walking towards the stairs to get to the ground floor. The complex he lived in wasn't that large, having only three floors and four apartments on each. He lived in the middle of the second floor, so he didn't have to walk too far to get to wherever he wished to in the building.

"Hey, Ryu!" he heard a voice call out after exiting the building. Looking in the direction the sound came from, he saw another boy his age. It was one of his classmates from college, Kishi Tenrou. He was the kind of guy who got along with everyone and who nobody had any issues with, except for bullies. He and his two best friends, Drake and Kai, were each nightmares for delinquents or thugs who liked picking on those who couldn't do much back. They dished out punishment so regularly that they ended up gaining the title 'Massacre Trio' from the less civil members of society. Ryu was friends with all three, having helped them deliver a well-deserved beat-down a few times.

"Hi Kishi, what's up?" he asked in greeting.

"Nothing much," replied Kishi, giving his signature small smile. "I just saw you as I was walking past. I'm on my way to my part-time job. What about you?"

"Just going for a walk in the park," Ryu told him. "The weather's good and it's a nice place so I thought why not?"

"True," agreed Kishi. "Anyway, I need to get going. Take care alright? See ya later."

"Yeah, you too," Ryu said in farewell before the two of them turned around and went their separate ways.

While making his way through the city streets, Ryu tuned out the noise of the cars that passed by and the people talking. While it wasn't really that busy, he preferred the simulated quiet and the calm it often brought. He continued like that for the next ten minutes until he finally reached the high iron gates of the park.

The moment he entered was like he'd stepped into another world. The sounds of the city vanished, replaced by birds chirping merrily and leaves rustling in the wind. Stopping for a moment, he closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath. The air felt refreshing, cleaner and crisper. Reopening his oculars, he steadily walked down one of the various paths that branched out from the entrance.

'Heh, I feel good just walking through this place,' he mentally noted. 'The nature all around gives off a pleasant vibe too.' Just a few metres ahead, he noticed a man who looked to be in his late twenties standing behind a table/ stall with multiple small objects laid on it. A small smile forming on his face, he made his way over. "Hey," he greeted the man. "Got any new ones?"

"Ah, Ryu," said the man. "Good to see you again kid. Yeah, I've got quite a few new ones in. anything that catches your eye?"

Ryu scanned the various keychains with his green eyes. There was a wide array of different objects and designs, as well as ones made from different materials. A particular one caught his interest. It was a black colour and made from metal. Two single-bladed swords that crossed each other in a 'X' formation. The hilts were simple, the cross guards weren't in the usual style though. They had three spiking protrusions at each side, with the middle ones being straight whilst the ones near the hilt or blade slightly curved towards them respectively. The blades themselves were slightly broad, but no so much that it looked like you'd need both hands to use one if it were the actually large enough, were narrower towards the hilts and had tips that curved up and out a bit.

"How much is this one?" he inquired, picking it up to show the seller.

"I'll let you have it for one-fifty," the man told him.

"Seriously?" he asked, expecting it to be more.

"Well, consider it a sort of gift kid," said the man. "You buy stuff from me pretty often."

"Thanks," Ryu said appreciatively as he handed over the money.

"Pleasure doing business with you," said the man heartily as he took the money.

Ryu slid the keychain into his pocket and walked on past the man and his merchandise, continuing his earlier stroll. He let his mind relax and enjoy the serene atmosphere of the park. He carried on calmly making his way through the pocket of nature, taking his time and admiring the plant life as he passed.

However, an unexpected crackling sound caught his attention. Not only was it out of place, but it sounded unnatural too. A little space in front of him, he saw what looked like a smoky, swirling dark blue hole that was rapidly growing. Within a second, it was wider than his entire body's length. He began feeling a pulling sensation, as though something was trying to suck him into the portal. Trying to maintain his balance, Ryu started inching backwards so he could escape its pull. Suddenly, the pulling increased hundred-fold and he found himself yanked off of his feet before getting swallowed into the rip in reality.

(Dimensional portal):

Ryu screamed in agony as strange foreign energies zapped and assaulted his body. He felt like he was being pulled apart fibre by fibre while simultaneously getting crushed by a grinder. Bolts of lightning hit him every second, sparking erratically. Somehow, the keychain that he'd bought earlier came out from his pocket and was immediately subjected to the strange forces of the space he was in.

The keychain began to grow in size, until it was large enough to actually be considered two real swords, each the length of his full body minus his head. They separated away from each other and the chain linking the two together shattered. For a brief moment, ominous red tribal designs glowed across the blunt sides of each sword's blade before fading.

Black flame-like marking materialised on his right forearm and the right edge of his face, licking at his right eye and temple. His nails burst out into small but sharp and deadly-pointed claws. His canines prolonged slightly and grew sharper. Finally, his irises turned a blood red. However, Ryu didn't notice any of the changes that happened to his body or to his keychain. All his mind was registering was the unbearable, impossible pain. Then, within a flash, his body reverted back to its original appearance.

Several small, marble sized orbs of what looked like plasma gathered around him as he fell unconscious. They began gaining a more solid appearance, until they looked like crystals or gem stones. The twin black swords created from his former keychain began spiralling around him, like two supernatural guardians that were soon joined by the orbs. His body continued falling through the space of iridescent colours and swirling energy clouds.

(?):

A figure was running across a blackened, charred-looking plane. She had dark brown hair that reached her lower back, a fair skin tone and golden eyes. She was clothed in a white furry jacket of sorts, pitch black pants and matching shoes. However, her most unusual and striking features were the black cat ears atop her head and the black cat tail trailing behind from her tailbone.

She was panting heavily and trying to maintain her movement, but was quickly wearing down. She'd been running for ages and her energy was nearly spent, especially with the not-so-little skirmish that took place before she started running. The numerous bruises that marred her skin weren't helping either, especially when they were all throbbing with a dull ache. Soon, she dropped to the ground out of exhaustion, finally having reached the point where her body simply couldn't carry on any more.

The large, brutish being pursuing after her continued to draw closer. He was roughly around three heads higher than a fully grown man, was bald, had a few small spikes around the crown of his head, had red skin over his rather muscled frame and carried a large executioner's sword in one hand. His clothes were simple yet coarse in appearance and had shredded ends at the sleeves and trousers. He was an oni, but not one of the usual types. Normally, someone of his level would be no problem for her to deal with, however she was completely drained from the various enemies that she'd dealt with before and the long run she'd just done.

'Is this how I'm going to end?' she thought sadly. 'Just getting brutally murdered by this oni?' He was almost near her by now. He wasn't bothering to rush, partly because he himself was worn out from chasing after her, and partly because he knew that there was no need to.

"Ha, finally out of steam nekomata?" he asked rhetorically while moving towards her, only a few metres remaining. His voice was rough and gravelly, matching his appearance. "I'm going to enjoy taking your head as a trophy."

Suddenly, a crackling sound pierced through the air, making both individuals look up in confusion to see some kind of smoky, swirling wormhole in the sky. There was also another sound that was steadily getting louder, which they soon realised was the sound of somebody screaming.

Ryu had regained consciousness a few seconds ago. The intense agony no longer flooded his body, but he could tell that he was plummeting down at an insane speed. The sheer insanity of it all, as well as the fear of the consequences if he hit some kind of ground, caused him to scream out. He vaguely registered the two obsidian black swords and the multiple little spheres of different colours orbiting around him, although he was too freaked out to pay much attention to them.

The amalgamated colours around him vanished as his body exited the portal, falling towards where the oni was standing. Through pure coincidence, while he was attempting to right himself, his right elbow stuck out from his body, resulting in him delivering a powerfully devastating elbow drop directly to the demon's head.

The lion's share of his kinetic energy having transferred to the unfortunate oni, Ryu fell to the ground safely as the large red demon crashed to the floor in a daze. The objects that had been circling around his body clattered down around him, but the swords vanished through a black mist that covered them from view before dispersing. Holding his spinning head, Ryu began trying to get back up to his feet, swaying wildly from side to side. He managed to get back into a standing position, but then vomited a few seconds later. Feeling a little better, he straightened up a bit when the dizziness returned again.

Noticing a shadow come over him, Ryu looked back only for him to see the oni towering over his smaller body. Not only that, but he looked pretty ticked off to say the least, if the bared fangs were anything to go by.

"A demon?" he muttered in shock.

"How dare you attack me like that, you lowly human!" the oni snarled.

"What?" said Ryu in bewilderment.

Not giving any more words, the oni reared back his free hand before thrusting it out at the black-haired teen. His muscle memory and fighting instincts kicking in, Ryu's emerald eyes sharpened with focus whilst they observed the approaching fist. He redirected the larger-than-human fist away from its original course, making the oni stumble a bit as he overextended. Wasting no time whatsoever, Ryu charged in and leaped up to slam his right knee into the demon's solar plexus, knocking the wind out of it.

Before he could do anything further however, a wave of intense nausea overcame him. He staggered around a bit as the world seemed to swim within his vision. He blacked out once again and dropped backwards onto the floor as the oni recovered from his hit and straightened up. He looked at the downed teenager with an unreadable expression.

"Not bad for a human," he stated with a hint of respect. He then raised his executioner's sword into the air above his head. "But unfortunately for you, that will gain no mercy from me."

Black, smoky wisps began trailing up from Ryu's body, making the Oni halt in surprise. Just like what had occurred when he was in the wormhole, his body began to change. His nails turned into the sharp and deadly claws, the black flame-like markings started manifesting across his right arm and on the right edge of his face. His mouth twisted into a snarl, showing his elongated canines while a low, rumbling growl came from his throat. Then, in a cloud of black mist at each hand, the twin blades appeared. A second after they did, the spikes on each that pointed towards the blades suddenly prolonged, as did the middle spikes which also began to bend towards the blades, leaving only the ones that pointed towards the hilts in their original shape. The tip of each blade curved upwards more whilst a section halfway through the blunt edge gained a small, outwards-pointing curve.

Like he was being pulled up by strings, Ryu's body began rising, his upper body coming up first. His arms were spread out at his sides, he stopped baring his teeth and his eyes were still closed. When he reached a standing position he remained completely motionless, his head tilted down with his hair overshadowing his shut eyes.

The oni lowered his large sword cautiously and held it at the ready, not sure what to expect. All of a sudden, Ryu's head snapped up, revealing his blood red eyes. He gave a low growl at the oni, how an alpha would to a challenging rival. Within the blink of an eye, he was right in front of the red-skinned demon and cut off his left arm from the shoulder. The oni shouted in pain and took a few steps back, staring at the human in disbelief. No, this was no human. It was more of a demon than even he was, especially with the oppressive feeling it was giving out, like a pressure all over his body.

Ryu flipped the sword in his right into a reverse grip and subsequently stabbed the blade down into the dismembered arm. The red tribal designs appeared across the blunt side and a small noise that sounded like someone drinking could be heard. The nekomata and oni watched in morbid fascination as the severed limb began to wither, almost like it was being sucked dry. He lifted the black blade out of the drained flesh, the red designs promptly vanishing the moment he did so.

Not wanting to be taken by surprise again, the brutish demon charged at the demonic teenager, swinging his own sword forward. Ryu parried with the sword in his left hand, then knocked his opponent's weapon away with the one grasped in his right. The oni started sending his fist at the smaller being in a desperate attempt to punch him, however Ryu stabbed both of his blades right into the oni's chest.

Once again, the tribal marking appeared across the blunt sections while the demon fell backwards onto the floor. His flesh was rapidly drying out and withering as the two swords drank his blood and absorbed it.

"Ha ha," he rasped out. "Being killed by… a powerful opponent… a… satisfactory… end."

The raven-haired youth didn't give any response. Instead, he raised his hand towards his weapons when the oni's body was nothing more than a mummified husk. Both swords disappeared in a flash of black mist. Letting his hand drop back to the side, he closed his red eyes. The black markings on his body began receding. The small orbs that had fallen through with him rose up and moved to his position, circling around him for a bit before they fell down to the ground along with his body, which had reverted back to normal.

Having watched the entire spectacle, the nekomata slowly pushed herself up onto her elbows and started crawling towards him. Intentionally or not, he had just saved her life. The least that she could do was make sure that he was okay. Finally reaching Ryu after a minute or so of slow progress, she gently placed one of her slender fingers on his jugular vein, checking for a pulse. She let out a sigh of relief when she felt a steady beating under the digit. Picking up one of the numerous spheres around him, a green one to be precise, she put it into her mouth and ate it.

Amazingly, all of her injuries began to heal at an extremely speedy pace, leaving her perfectly healthy and fit within a second. Getting up into a sitting position, she looked down at the teenage human's face as he slept peacefully. Hopefully he'd wake up soon, then she could thank him and ask if he needed any help himself.

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 **Please comment/ review. I don't mind suggestions or constructive criticism, but please don't just flame.**


	2. Chapter 2: Introductions and new world

**Hello everyone and welcome to the 2nd chapter. I don't really have much else to say, so read and enjoy!**

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 **Chapter 2:**

Introductions and new world

Ryu let out a groan as he began to return to consciousness. Opening his emerald eyes, he saw what looked like a person looking down at him through his slightly blurred vision. In the next second, his vision cleared and the events that happened before he blacked out came rushing back to him. He also noticed the black cat ears atop the dark brown-haired head of the girl staring at him.

He bolted up onto his feet with a startled shout. He hastily moved back from the nekomata a few paces. Quickly scanning around, he saw the mummified remains of what appeared to be that red demon which had attacked him before he fainted. Turning his head back to the cat-girl, he noticed that she was observing him with a curious look in her golden eyes.

"What happened here?" Ryu asked cautiously. "And how did that red demon end up like that?"

"You mean you don't remember what happened?" inquired the nekomata.

"Well, that thing attacked me and then I blacked out," he stated. "What the hell am I supposed to remember?"

"You're the one that killed him," the nekomata told him, slowly standing up. He absent-mindedly noticed that she was a few inches shorter than he was. "Soon after you fell down, your body changed and you summoned these two swords that drank his blood and left his body dry."

"What?" he said with an 'are you serious' look. "You're telling me that I killed that demon while I was knocked out?"

"Well, your eyes were open, and they were red," she informed him. "You didn't really say anything though, just struck him down. When he was finished, you changed back to normal and your two swords vanished then you fell unconscious again."

Ryu took a moment to go over everything that this cat-girl was claiming. If this was any other situation or day, he would have a hard time believing it. However, he'd been sucked into some kind of portal and was sure that his body had been messed around with, so it was possible that he'd gained some kind of inhuman power. He tried focusing on himself, more specifically on trying to 'feel' out any anomalies. Remembering what the nekomata had told him about the swords, he willed them to come to him. Feeling a sudden weight manifest in each of his hands, he looked to see the twin black blades.

He frowned as he recognised the swords as the ones from the keychain that he'd bought earlier. He felt a strange influx of information in his brain, gaining the knowledge that they had the ability to absorb and store blood which would become enchanted and used to heal him.

"Are these the swords you were talking about?" he inquired.

"Yes, but they were slightly different last time," she answered, scanning over them. "The tip of the blades curved out more and the front and middle spikes were slightly longer and pointed forwards more. Red marking were on the blunt sections too."

Ryu willed the blood blades away, causing them to vanish in a flash of black mist. He gave a sigh, wondering just how things had gotten so crazy. His eyes widened as he realised that he might not even be in his own world right now.

"Hey," he called the nekomata. "This isn't Earth, is it?"

"Earth?" the brown-haired cat-girl asked. "Earth as in the human world? No, this is a separate realm, inhabited by what your kind like to collectively label as 'demons'."

Ryu began to panic. He didn't know what he was going to do. Was there even a way for him to get back? What if there wasn't? What was he supposed to do for the rest of his life when he didn't even know anything about this place?

"Do you need a way to get back?" the nekomata asked him as if sensing his distress.

"Do you know a way I can get back home?" His tone was desperate as he looked at her with a glimmer of hope in his emerald eyes.

"Well, not exactly," she admitted, but quickly continued before her saviour could get disheartened. "Although I know that there are ways. I can help you search for someone who knows how to get you back, since you did save my life, even if it was an accident. Also, I like travelling around anyway, so it's a win for both of us."

The black-haired teen considered her offer. He didn't get the feeling that she was trying to trick or harm him. Plus, he knew absolutely nothing about this world he was now in so he'd definitely need help.

"Sure, I'd like that a lot," he agreed with a small smile. "Thank you."

"Oh it's nothing," the cat-girl assured. "Like I said, I owe you for saving me and we'll both benefit too." She then crouched down and pointed to a neat pile of different coloured orbs and gems. "These came with you when you fell through the portal. I guess you must be really lucky since they're all rare and valuable recovery items of different kinds."

"Oh, that's convenient," Ryu commented. "But I don't think I can shove all those into my pockets."

"I have a pouch we could put them in if that's fine with you," she offered, showing said cloth pouch to him. It was a maroon colour and looked to be crafted from some kind of durable leather.

"I think that would be best. Thanks," he consented.

The nekomata began carefully putting the colourful items into the pouch.

"If you don't mind telling me, what's your name?" she asked him when she was done and stood back up.

"Ryu. Ryu Yamikage, I'm seventeen years old," he told her. "What about you?"

"My name is Mei Hoshi," the cat-girl informed. "I'm also seventeen. There's a small town not too far from here. Would you like to go there?"

"Well, I suppose it'll be a good place to start off from," Ryu agreed. "We could ask around and gather supplies too."

"Alright, follow me." Without further ado, Mei began walking off. Not missing a beat, the black-haired teen tailed her.

After a few steps, Ryu felt a sudden vibration in his pocket.

"Hey, just wait up for a while please," he called out to Mei. He took out his smartphone from his pocket. A strange notification was displayed on the screen.

"What's wrong?" Mei asked, approaching him and looking at the device in his hands.

"Something's up with my phone," he answered. "I'm just checking what it is."

The notification said that a new app had been successfully installed onto his phone and to unlock the phone for more details. Swiping the slider and entering his passcode, he was greeted with a new message. It read as follows:

 _The team management app has been successfully installed. This app is a variation of the summoning app. It allows you to 'store' your allies to protect them from any further harm and let them recover from their injuries and exhaustion. You can release your stored ally at any time. Furthermore, it allows you to store any useful items you may find along your journey and provides an approximate representation of your allies' condition/ health and energy, as well as how much blood is currently stored in your blades. Finally, it safely stores any Macca, the versatile 'currency' of this realm, that you may obtain. On a side note, you will not need to charge your phone and your battery will not decrease due to the 'charged' air which will keep it topped up and optimum. Please have a safe journey._

"That's useful," Ryu commented, dismissing the message and opening the new app, simply labelled 'Team' and had some kind of crystal for an icon. The display was rather simple yet dynamic. The background was a dark navy blue. There was a white-edged square box with rounded corners inside which was a picture of Mei's face. Next to it was her full name in white lettering and under that were two bars, one green and one light blue. On the right side of the screen were three tabs: 'Allies', which was currently highlighted in red, 'Blades' and 'Items'. In the top right corner was another small box with the word 'Macca' printed inside and stated that he currently had 2500. He exited the app and turned his phone off.

"What is it?" the brown-haired nekomata inquired.

"This device is called a mobile phone," Ryu informed her, pointing to his phone. "It's used to contact others and can do other tasks, but I didn't think I'd have much use for it in this world since there's no signal. It seems that it was somehow affected by me coming here, since a new feature has been added to it. It said that I can keep track of your condition and 'store' you in a special space for protection if need be, same goes for any other allies we might make. It can also show me information about my blood blades and store items and Macca for me." He returned the device to his pocket.

"Oh," was all Mei said in response.

"It's okay if you don't really know what else to say," the black-haired teen assured her. "It is pretty unexpected and confusing after all. Anyway, let's get moving to that town you mentioned."

"Okay." Leading the way again, Mei began walking off, followed by her new companion.

The pair had been walking for a while, making some small talk along the way. Ryu had told Mei that he was a college student and then gave her a brief explanation of what college was. She had told him how she liked to travel around and see the different parts of the world they were in. They talked a bit about their hobbies and found that they shared a common liking for physical activities as well as reading the odd bit of literature from time to time. The nekomata seemed quite interested in the human realm, so he was telling her things about it and answering the questions that she posed to him. In return, she also told him a bit about how this world was and he thankfully found that it wasn't too different to Earth that he wouldn't be able to cope. Still, he couldn't afford to let his guard down.

Soon, they arrived at the village which Mei had informed him about. It was a simple-looking settlement, with the buildings being made from what appeared to be stone and wood. Ryu saw numerous non-human beings that all possessed a roughly humanoid shape walking around. A few took notice of him and abruptly stopped in their tracks, surprised at the sight of a young human.

"Come on, let's go to the inn," said Mei, taking a hold of Ryu's wrist and pulling him along with her. "I know the owner. It'll give you a chance to get away from all the stares too."

He didn't object, simply following her along towards a large stone building.

The inn was fairly empty on the inside. Simple yet elegant wooden furniture was arranged in an orderly manner. A few guests were seated at some of the tables, engaged in their conversations. Behind the large wooden reception desk was a teenage-looking girl with bright yellow eyes, medium length silver hair and a pair of matching fox ears atop her head. Three silver tails were swishing around behind her. She was dressed in simple, red-coloured kimono-style clothing.

"Hello Yuki," Mei greeted as she approached the desk.

The fox-girl's facial expression visibly lit up. "Mei!" she cried out happily, practically leaping over the counter to give the nekomata a hug. Her furry ears and tails also started waving about erratically. "I haven't seen you in ages!" She released Mei from her embrace. "I heard that you got into a tight spot last night with a bunch of stupid and angry oni. You're not hurt are you?"

"No, I'm perfectly fine and safe," Mei reassured the other girl, Yuki, who seemed to be a close friend. "Although I do owe that to this person here." She gestured to Ryu who was standing beside her.

The black-haired teen shifted nervously as Yuki took a good look at him, her eyes widening in surprise.

"A human?" she said quietly in awe. "Wow, that's rare. What do you mean you owe your safety to him though?"

"He defeated the leader of the onis while I was injured and exhausted, saving my life," Mei elaborated.

"To be honest, I don't really even remember doing it, so I'm not sure if it counts," Ryu mentioned.

"That doesn't matter," stated Yuki. "You still saved my friend, so I'm grateful." She put her right hand forward. "I'm Yuki Yoko. I'm a kitsune."

Ryu shook her hand. "My name's Ryu Yamikage," he introduced. He cracked a small smile. "I'm a human, if you couldn't tell."

Yuki gave a small giggle. "You're funny. Anyway, what do the two of you need?"

"About that," began Mei. "We were wondering if you or your mother knew a way to get Ryu back home to the human realm."

The kitsune put on a thoughtful face. After a few more seconds she let out a sigh.

"Sorry, but I can't recall anything," she apologised. "Maybe my mother knows something. She's in the back right now. Come with me." She turned around and walked towards a door behind the desk, the other two following after her.

They entered an average-sized room that appeared to be a living room, having three sofas that all faced towards a coffee table inbetween them. Sitting in one of the soft chairs was another female kitsune. She looked like an older version of Yuki, but had platinum blond hair, ears and five tails. Ryu concluded that this was Yuki's mother.

"Mother, Mei and someone else are here to ask you about something," Yuki called. The older kitsune looked up at her daughter and the two accompanying her.

"A human?" she said in surprise upon seeing Ryu. "Although, there seems to be something more." She set her gaze on her daughter. "Alright, Yuki you can go back to the desk now. I will attend to our guests." Yuki nodded in understanding before walking back out and closing the door behind her. "Please, have a seat. It's good to see you again by the way, Mei."

"Thank you Mrs Yoko," said Mei whilst she sat down in one of the sofas, leaving Ryu to take the last one. "It's nice to see you again as well."

"And who might you be young man?" the kitsune inquired, addressing the human.

"Ryu Yamikage," he answered her.

"Kureha Yoko," Yuki's mother replied. "So, what is it that you wanted to ask me?"

"We were wondering if you knew a way to get Ryu here back home to the human world," Mei spoke up. "He was somehow dragged into ours. He saved my life as well, so I want to repay him."

"I see. So you weren't brought here by your own accord," said Kureha. "That complicates things. As far as I know, the only way to get you back to your own world is through advanced and powerful magic which opens portals in space, or through powerful magic objects. Unfortunately, I have neither. In fact, very few even know the magic required and even fewer have the power required to cast such magic."

Ryu's eyes went wide at the revelation. His mind went blank. He couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"So… I'm stuck here?" he asked in disbelief.

"Not necessarily," Kureha cut in before he could have a breakdown. "You might be lucky enough to find someone who knows the required procedure. Even if they don't have the magical reserves, it's possible to use external power to complete the spell. Or, if you can get the right items, you could open your own gate back to your realm."

"Do you know anywhere that might have what I'm looking for?" Ryu asked.

"Well, since magic and magical items are involved, you might find something to help you in a settlement or home of a race known for magic, like fairies."

"What about the fairy town around here?" suggested Mei. "The one governed by a high pixie?"

"It's as good a place to start as any," confirmed Kureha. "Although you might want to be careful. It's a two day journey by foot, and recently some of the wandering species have become more violent than usual. There have also been more strange monsters showing up, those ones that don't fit into any of our races or species and can't be reasoned with."

Ryu slowly stood up from his seat.

"Thank you for the advice," the teen told Kureha. "Mei, let's get going."

"Alright," agreed the brown-haired nekomata as she also stood up.

"Wait," Kureha called, causing the other two to face her. "The two of you are probably hungry. Ask Yuki to fix a beef steak for both of you. It's on me, and don't worry about the food Ryu. We have animals in this world that are more or less the same as the ones in the human world, just with different colours or slightly different appearances."

"Thank you," Ryu said gratefully. "For all your help."

"Think nothing of it," assured the kitsune. "I haven't seen Mei in quite some time, and you are an unfortunate soul who I want to help." Her face took on a more serious appearance. "However, you should keep in mind that so-called coincidences like yours are usually tied in with much larger things." The teenage human nodded in understanding.

Ryu and Mei walked out of the room and back into the inn's main reception and dining hall. Ryu went over to a vacant table near the desk while his cat-girl companion informed Yuki to give them two beef steaks. After a few more minutes of waiting, the duo were comfortably eating in silence. Ryu had to admit, for some otherworldly meat it tasted more or less the same, in fact it tasted better than any steak he'd eaten at a restaurant. Finishing off the last of their meal, they stood up and returned their plates to Yuki and bade her farewell then left the building.

"Should we head off for that fairy town now?" Ryu suggested.

"Not just yet," stated Mei. "While we should try to get there as quickly as we can, we're going to need supplies."

"Alright. Where do we get what we need?"

"There's a few shops here that sell different things. We'll have a look around."

They spent the next hour or so gathering and buying supplies which they thought would be necessary. Of course, Ryu attracted a fair amount of attention wherever they went, although it wasn't always too troublesome. In the end, they'd used 1500 Macca to buy a fairly large tent, two sleeping bags, some containers of long-lasting magically frozen food and some decent quality firewood. While Mei had been willing to pay for everything, Ryu insisted that he also chip in, saying that he wouldn't feel right if she did so. He convinced her to let him pay 1000 whilst she gave 500. He stored the items into the pocket dimension linked to the app on his phone to save space.

A while later, the two were walking through the empty wilderness outside the town. The terrain was rather rocky but still fairly smooth. Some trees and plants that Ryu had never seen before were scattered around them and a few patches of dark green grass covered the ground in small bits. The sky over their heads was beginning to darken, indicating that night wasn't too long off.

They spoke to each other a little more about various random topics whilst they walked on for around half an hour. By now, night was right around the corner. The human teenager closed his emerald eyes and gave a deep sigh as he thought about the crazy events that had occurred today. Mei looked at him curiously, wondering what was wrong. As if to add to the effect, her black cat tail was swishing around slightly too.

"It's nothing. I've just had a long and crazy day." His tone had a hint of tiredness in it. "I mean, I never even remotely expected anything like this to end up happening to me."

"That's understandable," Mei told him. Her lips formed into a small, friendly smile "I never really expected to meet a human let alone be saved by one."

Ryu gave a small chuckle. "Then I guess that makes us in the same boat."

Any further conversation between the pair was abruptly cut off when they heard a deep, threatening growl come from nearby. Looking in the direction of the noise, they saw something that neither of them recognised.

It looked vaguely like a wolf with its somewhat lupine facial features and dark grey fur, as well as the way it stood on all fours. However, it was much larger than any ordinary wolf, being as large as they were and its lean limbs looked more humanoid in structure. Its eyes were fully red, giving it a wild, intimidating glare. Its large and powerful hands were tipped with long talons. Sharp spines protruded from the elbows and knees. To top it all off, two extra arms were located on its back. The _thing_ growled at them again, clearly intending to attack.

"It's one of those strange monsters that Kureha was talking about," Mei warned, shifting her position into some kind of combat stance. Her nails lengthened slightly and sharpened into claws. She reminded him of a cat about to pounce at a rival or on its prey.

In response, Ryu got into a combat stance himself and summoned his twin blood blades, making them appear in a brief burst of black mist. "I guess that thing leaving us alone is out of the question." He steeled his nerves for the confrontation as his gaze hardened.

Something unexpected happened, but he managed to keep his cool. Within the back of his mind, something popped up that seemed like it was keeping a track of his and Mei's condition. It was like separate mental images of him and her with a green and light blue bar next to each, along with an abstract yet accurate idea of how much blood was currently in his weapon. It was almost as though the strange new app on his phone was communicating with his mind to provide a real-time, hands-free and non-distracting heads-up.

The wolfish beast charged at them with its fang-lined maw wide open. Ryu and Mei dived out of the way in opposite directions to dodge the bite. Using her superior speed and cat-like agility, Mei turned on the spot and leaped at the monster. The nekomata raked her sharp claws across its back as she zipped over it, avoiding any swipes from its extra arms and landing next to Ryu.

Their enemy roared in anger and turned to face them, but Ryu didn't give it a chance to do anything. Having dashed up to it, he smashed the base of the hilt of one of his swords into the side of its head, stunning it temporarily. Without wasting any time, he used the other sword to brutally slash it in the side before giving it a strong kick and leaping back to a safe distance near his ally. He noticed how the blood in his 'blood-pool' had increased ever so slightly.

Recovering from its new injuries, the monster barrelled towards them with surprising speed using only its hind legs. Mei quickly side stepped out of the way while Ryu blocked the swipe aimed at him using one of his blades. Taking the opening available, the black-haired teen rammed his other sword into the creature's abdomen. It recoiled from the sudden pain and moved back, the weapon still impaled in its body.

Grasping the remaining blade with both hands, Ryu kept his guard up and remained vigilant. He sensed his blood-pool steadily growing larger as his sword continued to leech blood from the monster. A blur whizzed past him as Mei ran at the distracted beast. Like an acrobat, she began leaping around and over it, slashing into it with her claws every time and drawing dark red blood from it. Touching down from her latest feat, her claws began to glow with a white light. She took a swipe at her opponent, this time tearing into its flesh quite badly and knocking it back as well. The glow disappeared and she slowly walked over to the downed monster.

Giving an infuriated roar, the wolf-like being suddenly rose up and grabbed the expecting nekomata with one of its large hands. It prepared its other (main) hand to spear her and would have succeeded if Ryu hadn't rushed in and caught its talons on the flat side of his blade. The monster threw Mei and slashed at the human with its now free hand. Ryu pulled back, but was unable to avoid the claws nicking into his upper right arm. He gave a brief cry of pain as they cut through his skin and drew blood. Then, instead of bleeding out, the wounds became covered with blood and began shrinking rapidly until they vanished, leaving intact and unblemished skin without as much as a scar. The black-haired teen noticed that his blood-pool had diminished slightly.

He was brought out of his musing by the feeling of suddenly being grabbed by a large hand. He saw the wolf-like monster bring him towards its face, opening its mouth slightly. Thinking quickly, he mentally willed for his impaled blood blade to drain the blood out of the thing faster. The result was instantaneous, the creature dropping Ryu from its grasp as it began to slowly shrivel and stumble back. Not wasting the chance before him, Ryu picked himself off the floor and dived at his enemy. When he was in range, he shoved the blood blade in his hands straight into the beast's skull.

The monster fell onto the floor lifelessly, still steadily shrivelling up as its blood was drained away. Then, before it was even fully drained of its vitae, its body began flaking and breaking up, hastily disintegrating before their very eyes. Within ten seconds, the full thing had crumbled away into thin air without a trace, leaving the two blood blades to clatter to the ground. A few miniscule, shining flecks of light streaked out from where the monster had been and went right into Ryu's pocket, the one with his phone inside. Within the back of his consciousness, something notified him that he'd just gained 500 Macca.

The black-haired teen mentally dismissed his blood blades, causing them to disappear in a brief cloud of black mist as usual. He let out a deep breath as he felt the effects of the adrenaline coursing through his veins begin to wear off. Mei came over to his side, brushing her dark brown hair out of her face.

"Are you okay?" she asked him, looking at his previously injured arm.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he told her. He frowned slightly at the torn fabric of his sleeve. "Although I'm probably going to need a new shirt. What about you, are you okay from when that thing threw you?"

"It was nothing too serious," Mei dismissed with a small smile. "I'm just a little sore, nothing a good night's sleep won't fix."

"How about we set up camp here for the night?" Ryu suggested, scanning their surroundings. "It's been a pretty tiresome day and it's getting quite late too."

"That's fine with me," the cat-girl consented. "This should be a safe spot now too."

"Alright, I'll just get the tent and stuff out."

Ryu retrieved his phone from his pocket and turned it on. After entering his code, he opened the 'Team' app and selected the items tab. The screen displayed three separate boxes labelled 'Consumables', 'Clothing' and 'Misc'. Pressing 'Misc', he selected the previously made 'Sleeping' set and chose to take it out. A glowing light blue mass materialised on the ground in front of them prior to the glow fading within a second to reveal a fully set up and standing tent with two folded up sleeping bags in front of it.

Ryu took the black one which he'd chose for himself while Mei took the white one that she'd bought. Stepping into the spacious tent, the pair removed their footwear and left them by the entrance, which Ryu then closed and secured. They set out their respective sleeping bags and got into them, getting ready to call it a day and get some rest.

Ryu would have preferred to have a change of clothes or at least take his top off, but he felt that it would make the situation awkward. He was sure that Mei had some of her own sleeping preferences that she too was holding off. If it were any other time or place, he probably would have been too nervous to even sleep properly due to the prospect of being in a confined space with an attractive-looking girl his age, Nekomata or not. (In fact, he thought that the cat ears and tail made her look cuter.) But, things had been so crazy lately that he was simply too mentally exhausted to care.

"Good night Mei," he said out loud.

"Good night Ryu", Mei responded.

The human teen closed his eyes. With how unpredictable things were going to be whilst he was in this alien realm, he was going to need all the rest he could get for the coming day. Still, he was glad to have made a new friend. Hopefully, things wouldn't be too bad and he'd be home before he knew it.

 **Omake:** Absent-minded habits

After securing the tent's entrance, Ryu made his way over to where his sleeping bag lay. Without thinking, he took off his top as he prepared to get in. Suddenly, he remembered that he wasn't going to sleep in his room, as well as the fact that he wasn't alone either. He grabbed his discarded shirt from the floor and whipped around to face Mei and apologise.

"I'm sorry! I forgot that I'm not at my own place and took it off without thinking!" he hastily explained with an embarrassed blush. Mei was looking at his toned upper body with a blush of her own. Furthermore, her hands were on the zipper of her furry white jacket and it was slightly pulled down, not enough for Ryu to see anything, but enough for him to know that she was probably going to remove it before his outburst.

"I-i-it's o-okay," she stammered, quickly pulling the zip back up. "I forgot that I'm not on my own too, s-so we're even, okay?"

Both embarrassed teens let out nervous chuckles. Ryu put his shirt back on and got into his sleeping bag.

"Let's just pretend that this never happened and forget about it," Ryu said simply.

"Okay," agreed the nekomata, getting into her own sleeping bag. However, she couldn't get rid of the image of her companion's lean and developed torso out of her mind.

With an air of awkwardness hanging over them, both teens slowly fell into the grasp of sleep.

* * *

 **Yeah, I kind of don't know what the hell I was doing with the omake. Anyway, please review and follow!**


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